PAAVAI INSTITUTIONS

FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME –Report

Introduction:

Faculty development forms an integral part of the employment of all staff and offers a
systematic programme of opportunities for individuals, teams and departments to review and
enhance their expertise in tune with the objectives of the organization. Accordingly,
programmes are designed based on the following specific objectives.

 To focus on the quality of the professional performance of the members of faculty and
their implementation of curriculum in their roles as facilitators.
 To update content knowledge in the respective domains.
 To enrich the repertoire of instructional strategies.
 To develop collaborative structures and supportive team relationships banking on the
diverse strengths of the team.

PROGRAMMES

 To promote the desire to learn the correct usage of English language in different real-life
situations among the staff and students, from 4th July 2011 onwards, an exclusive activity
under the title English Corner was initiated by way of a weekly display of language items
on all the notice-boards of all the Paavai Institutions.

 The strength of the programme is that each English faculty of every engineering college, in
rotation, plays a significant role in the preparation of the language data for the display.

 A two-day Faculty Development Programme was organized on 25th and 26th July 2011
on the topics such as Paavai culture, professional ethics, innovative Pedagogic skills,
research initiatives and continuous self-assessment for the newly recruited staff
members, 39 in number, belonging to various Paavai Institutions, The following were the
resource persons.
1. Prof. R. Chenniappan
2. Dr.R.Kasthuri Bai
3. Prof. M. Mohan
4. Dr. V. Manivannan
5. Prof. V. Murali Babu
6. Prof. A. Suphalakshmi
7. Prof. M.Devi
  In the afternoon of 29th July 2011, a meeting was held for the members of the
Department of English at Paavai Arts & Science College for Women in the presence of
the Principal of the college to focus on the following aspects.

1. Teachers’ determination to converse only in English on the campus, in the

Department and in all those places, where a working knowledge of English is
required for social interaction.

2. Insisting upon students possessing a Pocket Oxford Dictionary and referring to it

during language learning and presentation.

3. English Corner practice could also be thought of to know about the correctness of
English Language.

4. Involving whole-heartedly in the process of disseminating knowledge and literary

taste to the students.

5. Creating student-friendly materials for slow-learners.

6. Emphasizing on the habit of reading supplementary readers for the learners.

7. The teachers were instructed to follow the three Ps: Prepare the subject well,
Practice mentally at home and Perform in the class.

 On 30th July 2011, guidance regarding preparing Self-introduction module was given to
the staff of the Dept. of English, PEC, for the benefit of Polytechnic as well as Engineering
students.

 In connection with the conduct of Bridge course , two meetings on 3.08.11and

10.08.11were organized for the English faculty of all the four Engineering colleges with
the view to prepare course materials to teach English.

 Realising the role of English in the corporate world, it was felt that the knowledge of
Business English is mandatory and to that effect, Business English Certification course
under the auspices of Cambridge University via British Council, Chennai was organized for
120 teachers in two batches for about 50 hours of teaching and 10 hours of practical for
each batch.
 Business English Certificate course has been started for the staff members of Paavai
Institutions from 17.08.11. Prof. R. Chenniappan, HOD, Department of English, welcomed
the gathering. Prof. K.K. Ramasamy Director, Administration addressed the staff members
to involve themselves in BEC. He encouraged them to know the things which are
unknown. Dr. R. Kasthuri Bai, Dean, Faculty Development inspired the staff.

 To validate the impact of two – day Faculty Development Programme on the teacher
participants practice teaching sessions were independently scheduled on
18th,19th,22nd,23rd.25th,and 26th of August 2011.The performance level of the beneficiaries
was assed to ensure an incremental increase in the use of development inputs.

 To inculcate the spirit of creativity and innovation among the young , inspiring,
resourceful and technically- inclined polytechnic students it has been planned to organize
a one – day Exhibition on Paavai premises. Suggestions were offered to identify potential
areas of experimentation and the means to ignite intellectual excitement among the
learners.

 To trigger diverse responses and accelerate out – of – the box thinking among
professionals, it was suggested that there should be a sea change in the technique of
allotting assignments to students. In line with that a set of sample assignments to
generate divergent thinking and its relevance was given to the faculty of IT, PCE.

 The teacher candidates of the I and II batch took their BEC exams on Nov 3rd and 4th of
2011.

 As 80percent of the use of language is found in spoken form, a 30 hour crash course in
conversational Competence in English is being held during lunch break (1.00p.m. to 2.00
p.m.) in the communication Lab of PEC from 18.11.11 for the I batch of teachers.

 A session on "Teacher Behaviour" for the staff of Paavai Institutions held on 27.12.2011
at PASCW.

 A faculty development programme on "Teacher behavior" was held at Paavai Arts &
Science College for women on 27th December 2011. Dr. R.Kasthuri Bai, Dean, Faculty
Development of Paavai Institutions spoke on the importance of Teacher behavior. The
destiny of a nation is shaped only in classrooms. Therefore, teachers are considered to be
the human architects. As teachers are considered to be the human architects there is a
growing need on the part of the teaching community to be more effective in the
dissemination of knowledge, skills and attitudes. Since the process of learning is
continuous; the chief guest asserted that the teachers should constantly update themselves
in their manner of content delivery, application of cutting edge technologies for the
betterment of learners. The speaker quoted several examples of world-class teachers to
 reinforce her statement that teachers occupy a pride of place in the entire academia and she
insisted upon the fact that teachers should provide quality teaching to make their wards
employable workforce. Similarly the learning youth should be harnessed in such a way that
they would evolve as responsible leaders and desirable citizens of a nation. Further, Dr.
Kasthuri Bai outlined that loyalty to the profession, loyalty to the institution and above all
loyalty to oneself as a conscientious person would help the teacher discharge her work as
smartly as possible. The speaker made the programme more interactive by posing pertinent
questions to help the teachers redefine themselves as facilitators of knowledge.

 An oratorical competition in English on the topic "ENVISAGING PAAVAI IN 2020" was

organized and conducted at 11.00 am on 15.12.2011 in the Cute Hall to promote
discourse management and the ability to foresee the phenomenal growth of Paavai
Institutions among the members of the faculty. Dr. Jayaraman, Director, PGI, Prof. N.
Kumarsamy, PGI, and Prof. S. Chandramouleeswaran, PEC, were the members of the jury.
The programme benefitted the audience by instilling in them the interest to develop
public speaking skill in English and enhance their commitment to the expectations of the
workplace.

 The topic for the Debate was "Whose Style of Leadership can give more gains to an
organization - Man or Woman? ". To inculcate the skills of argumentation, critical-
thinking and a masterful presentation of information dealing with the pros and cons of a
given topic in English, a Debating Competition was held at 3.30 pm on 16-12-2011 on the
campus of PEC for the faculty members of Paavai Institutions. Dr. R. Kasthuri Bai, Dean,
Faculty Development acted as the judge and gave the verdict neither in favour of male
leadership nor in favour of female leadership but in favour of the managerial skills which
culminate in boosting the performance factor of an organization. It was her firm
conviction that only the performance matters and not the gender discrimination. The
whole Debate became an exercise in the out-of-the-box thinking situation, for she gave an
unconventional ending to the Debate. The entire programme gave an intellectual delight
and it motivated the audience and their morale and quest for participating in such similar
brain-storming activities in English.
 Student support programme
 On 22.06.11, English Language Awareness Programme was arranged by Mrs. Selvi, HOD
IT, PCE for the benefit of the students of IT department at PCE, emphasizing the need to
enhance communicative competence. Simulation exercises were given in oral
communication under the guidance Dr. R. Kasthuri Bai, Dean, Faculty Development and
Prof. R. Chenniappan, HOD of English.

 To encourage Ist year Polytechnic students to develop effective speaking skill and
vocabulary acquisition, on July 7th and 8th July 2011 team teaching cum demonstration
was organized at Paavai Polytechnic college and at Paavai Varam Polytechnic college,
respectively. The English faculty of Paavai Engineering college worked as a team to
promote language skills among the learners.

 As a Reinforcement Learning Process, on 15.7.2011, the II year and the IV year students
of IT department of PEC were actively involved in Mock Interview, Self-introduction and
Group Discussion, leading to communicative ability.

 On 29th July 2011 a special lecture was given by Dr.R.Kasthuri Bai on the topic
Principles of Journalism for the staff and students of literature at Paavai Arts & Science
College for Women. Following this a general address was given by Prof.R.Chenniappan
on the Importance of English to the I year students belonging to different disciplines.

 On 3rd August 2011, the modules on self-introduction were handed over to the II year
B.E.,/B.Tech., students of PEC for practice in the Communication Lab.

 A series of pronunciation learning activities were arranged for the students of I year
Teacher Training Institute on 02.08.11, 09.08.11 and 16.08.11 with the assistance of
Prof.R.Chenniappan, HOD English.

 To bridge the gap between the entry and the expected levels of learning of English
Language, Maths and Physics, a three-day Bridge Course for I B.E/B.Tech students of
all the four Engineering colleges was organized from 06.09.11 to 08.09.11.

 To involve the students from other states in Higher – Order Interactive Spoken Skill, a
one-day training programme was conducted on 3.10.11 for them.

 To enable the below average students from other states to cope with language
competence in English, a week long coaching programme had been organized in the
 Communication Lab of PEC, during out of hours (from 5.00p.m. to 7.00 p.m.) from
17.10.11 to 22.10.11.

 Oratorical Competition on 16.11.11. Under the auspices of the English club of PEC,
an Oratorical Competition was held for the first year students and the Dean, Faculty
Development outlined the objectives of the competition and advised the speakers that
their oral script should have an interesting beginning, a captivating middle, and a
worth remembering end. She highlighted the power of oratory by citing a few
examples in order to instill confidence in the speakers.
 Debate - Electronic Devices a Bane or Boon? On 30.11.11. Under the auspices of the
English club of PEC, a Debate Competition was held for the first year students and the
Dean, Faculty Development acted as the judge for the programme and concluded the
event by stating that any electrical or electronic device by itself is not harmful. It is in
the wrong application of the gadget that one gets innumerable problems. So, a
judicious use of the benefits of scientific invention is the need of the hour.
 Play Acting on Social Evils on 8.12.2011. Under the auspices of the English club
of PEC, a Play-Acting Competition was held for the first year students and the Dean,
Faculty Development pointed out the relevance of histrionic talents in learning and
discharging appropriate social skills. She gave a short speech on the effective use of
stage, character selection, content development, body language, dialogue, make-up
and other accessories to make a theatrical event more effective.
 Behavioural Psychology and motivational minutes" for the betterment of students
held on 13th December 2011, PASCW

 In Pavai Arts and Science College for women, on 13.12.11 at Keerthi hall, Dr. R.
Kasthuri Bai, Dean Faculty Development conducted a session on "Behavioural
Psychology and motivational minutes" for the betterment of students. Dr. S.
Muthumeenakshi, Principal, Pavai Arts and Science College for women welcomed the
gathering. In the session, the Dean listed out the desirable qualities of a good learner.
The students should greet the elders and teachers with a pleasant smile. They should
spread their positive energy towards others by greeting and smiling. She said that the
students should do only good things and they should be good daughters to their parents.
In addition to that, being a woman, each one is responsible for adhering to the tradition
and the culture of the family and the workplace. Daughters should be aware of their
familial duties and only a self-motivated, goal-oriented and self-disciplined woman can
create worthy citizens and good leaders. Success is not a chance but a choice. So, the
youngsters must make an intelligent choice both personally and professionally.
 A programme on communicative competence in terms of self-introduction and
narration of real events was conducted for II MCA students of PEC on 2.1.12.
 Forthcoming Programmes
1. BEC programmes for II year B.E/B.Tech. Students in select batches.
2. BEC programmes for two more batches of teachers.
3. Continuation of conversational competence: crash course for two more batches of
teachers.
4. A one – day programme on
 Teaching Skills for staff of Paavai Arts And Science College for Women .
 Reviewing English Language Teaching for the English faculty of Paavai
institutions.
 Exploring and Explicating Newspapers as Teaching Learning Resource for the
faculty and the students.
5. Focus programmes on
 Projects & assignments
 Discourse Management
 Core Competence
 Performance Appraisal
 Integrated Teaching
 Interdisciplinary Research
 Governance & Leadership
 Accountability and Organizational Growth & Development
 Envisaging the Future of Paavai